Design by Karla Trincanello
Photography by Wing Wong
When a designer was tasked with making her client’s space stand out, she injected the project with distinctive touches that gave a Far Hills kitchen its own unique character.
The male half of the homeowner couple was clear: He didn’t want kitchen cabinets that looked like everyone else’s. “He wanted to see different textures, something that looked more interesting and special,” says designer Karla Trincanello, owner of Interior Decisions Inc. in Florham Park. The couple also desired a bigger kitchen, a large island and a look that would reflect the contemporary design of their 1970s Far Hills home.
So Trincanello got to work. The first order of business? Moving a laundry room to another area of the house, which gave them six extra feet and allowed a showstopping 9-foot island with a waterfall-style Quartz countertop in a marble pattern.
And for those all-important cabinets? Trincanello chose a light gray laminate with a vertical ribbed grain for the perimeter and used the same material on the island but in taupe with the ribbed design installed horizontally. There are also upper cabinets with glass fronts that Trincanello painted to add another layer of interest and texture while conveniently concealing the little-used items that are stored there.
The unique cabinets were a hit with the homeowner, but Trincanello’s favorite feature of the kitchen is the wall that houses the stove, which is what you see first when entering the room. She added a dark wood post-and-lintel frame, an oversize stainless steel hood and a backsplash in the same Quartz as the island countertop. “I wanted to make it a really exciting focal point,” says the designer.
Instead of a dining table, the homeowners, who are empty nesters, requested a sitting area instead. “The family room was too far away,” explains Trincanello. “They wanted to be able to sit in the kitchen and be able to talk to each other and watch the news and be right there.” But when the grandchildren visit, the cocktail table pulls up to dining-table height and expands, and the sectional doubles as banquette seating. Genius. And different. Which is just the way they like it.